Iraq's Supreme Court court ratifies election results

Iraq's Supreme Court has taken the first major step toward resolving the nation's election crisis, ratifying the results and declaring a secular alliance the biggest winner in the 7 March parliamentary vote.

Despite the official court approval of the results, the impasse remains far from over as it could take weeks if not months before MPs choose new leaders.

Announcing the certification, Chief Judge Midhat al-Mahmoud described the election results that gave 91 seats to the Iraqiya political alliance led by Ayad Allawi, a former prime minister and secular Shia, as "reliable".